July 07, 2022
The Members of the European Parliament (MEP) no longer object to the controversial proposition of the European Commission to give some investments in nuclear energy and natural gas a green and sustainable label. From now on, they will get a green label in the classification system for investors. According to the European Commission, gas and […]
July 07, 2022
In total, 188 km of new cycle paths will be built in Belgium, costing 144,1 million euros. An extra 261,6 million euros will be spent on renovating 950 kilometers of tracks. This was announced by the Secretary of State in charge of Economic Recovery, Thomas Dermine (PS), on the occasion of the Tour de France’s […]
July 07, 2022
With a market share of 18% or 1 744 520 newly registered cars in Europe, the ‘electrically chargeable’ car uptake has multiplied tenfold in the last five years. That means almost one in five cars sold has a plug (BEVs and PHEVs), compared to one in ten (10,5%) the year before. It’s one of the […]
July 06, 2022
On Tueday, the EU agreed on the Commission’s updated proposal to toughen emission ratings for plug-in hybrids (PHEV) by 2025 to mimic better the actual amount of CO2 they emit on the road, being sometimes three times higher than assumed. The so-called ‘utility factor’, used to calculate the share of electric driving in estimating CO2 […]
July 04, 2022
The first production models of the new 7 Series have now rolled off the production lines at the BMW plant in Dingolfing, including the all-electric i7 offshoot. Meanwhile, BMW seems also to consider producing the future ‘New Class’ models in its plant in Mexico for the American market. The BMW Group has invested more than […]
July 01, 2022
The Brussels Government has finalized the ‘Low-Emission Mobility Brussels’ roadmap with accompanying measures for gradually phasing out diesel and gasoline engines. In addition, the social support measures were also strengthened. The measures taken are also designed to respect the climate objectives of the Paris Agreement of the EU. 2030 is a turning point As previously […]
June 30, 2022
The Belgian gas net manager Fluxys and the Norwegian energy company Equinox are analyzing the feasibility of an undersea pipeline for the transport and storage of CO2 in the Norwegian gas fields. The pipeline would connect Zeebrugge and Norway and cover a distance of 1 000 km. Industrial CO2, captured in Zeebrugge, could then be […]
June 30, 2022
Norwegian battery-maker Freyr has received approval from its board to expand its plans for a Gigafactory in the country’s north. Called Arctic Giga, the plant is projected to raise its annual capacity to 29 GWh. The clearance for the larger-than-planned scale was announced simultaneously with Norway’s first official battery strategy. Giga Arctic is Freyr’s – […]
June 29, 2022
Early in the morning on Wednesday, the 27 member states of the European Council approved the ‘Fit for 55’ climate plan of the Commission, reducing CO2 emissions for cars by 55% by 2030 and 100% by 2035. Despite the last-minute maneuvers of car-producing countries like Italy to postpone the date, the 27 stick to 2035 […]
June 29, 2022
This summer, the Belgian energy platform Bolt will provide three festivals – Rock Werchter, Sfinks Mixed (Boechout), and Boomtown (Ghent) – with green electricity. After a first experiment last summer with Werchter Parklife, the company decided to extend the idea to three other festivals. “The organizers of festivals put great efforts into making their projects […]
June 29, 2022
Rail freight company Lineas will fit more than 5 000 wagons with silent brake blocks with the support of the Belgian federal government. The investment of 2,18 million euros is part of the ‘Retrofit Project’ and should give rail freight a much-needed boost. The government’s ambition is to double the freight transported by rail by […]
June 28, 2022
A new study on the cost of decarbonizing European shipping shows that running ships on green hydrogen-based fuels would hardly make consumer goods more expensive. On the contrary, green shipping would add just a few cents to most consumer goods. “Green shipping would add less than 10 cents to a pair of Nikes,” says Faig […]
June 27, 2022
The European Commission calls on all partners in the aviation sector to join forces in an alliance on zero-emission aviation. Over the next two decades, the Commission says, more than 44,000 new aircraft are expected to be on the market. It estimates the potential market volume for zero-emission aircraft at 26 000 by 2050, with […]
June 24, 2022
More and more Belgians are convinced that the (night) train is the ideal mode of transport for trips abroad. According to the Federal Mobility and Transport Agency’s survey, most travelers consider the train the perfect solution for a trip to Paris, London, or other popular European destinations like Amsterdam, Berlin, and Vienna. In the proper […]
June 24, 2022
The Esso fuel station at the Antwerp Noorderlaan, run by Belgian family-owned G&V Energy Group, is the first in the country where the fuel pumps have been replaced by High Power Chargers (HPC) with 300kW capacity. A sign of the times coming, as G&V and Dutch Allego plan to do the same on 12 other […]
June 23, 2022
More than eight out of ten Dutch drivers (86%) prefer their own car above a shared car. What’s more, almost half of all drivers in the Netherlands (46%) will never use a shared car. Not for all the tea in China. These are only some of the surprising conclusions of a survey of MisterGreen Electric […]
June 22, 2022
Sibelga, the manager of the Brussels gas and electricity distribution network, plans to use hydrogen by 2050 to heat old, poorly insulated buildings. According to the newspapers De Tijd, L’Echo, and La Libre Belgique, the company has had a study carried out for this purpose. As the availability of biogas is limited, green hydrogen could […]
June 22, 2022
An earlier EU phase-out date for cars and vans with internal combustion engines would net significant savings for European drivers and hugely reduce greenhouse gas emissions, according to new calculations by Greenpeace Germany. “An end to sales of new gasoline, diesel, and hybrid cars in 2028 would reduce oil use enough to save drivers €635 […]
June 21, 2022
Sevic? Never heard of it? Well, that might change as the German EV engineering start-up has its first V500e vehicles delivered by Bulgarian contract EV manufacturer Milara International to Bochum for internal testing and client approval. And it’s ready to take the European cities. The compact light utility EV with a unique cargo swap system […]
June 17, 2022
This summer, the Belgian national railway company NMBS/SNCB launches a special ‘off-peak summer subscription’ that allows passengers unlimited access to all train transport. The subscription ticket costs 59 euros (or €99 for two) and can be used on weekdays (from 9 a.m.), weekends, and holidays (all day). This new formula, however, is only available for […]
June 16, 2022
From 1 July, the emission measurement for diesel cars in the Belgian annual technical inspection will be changed. From then on, diesel cars will have to pass a new test procedure to map out the emission of particulate matter in the exhaust gases. The new system counts the particles that are present, making it possible […]
June 16, 2022
In April, Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo installed an expert committee to battle inflation and study ‘buying power and competitiveness’. Yesterday, Pierre Wunsch, chair of the committee and Governor of the National Bank, presented its intermediate conclusions. Among them, clear recommendations were to gradually reduce the highway speed limit to 100 kph and reduce […]
June 16, 2022
On Tuesday, Hyundai Belux officially delivered ten units of its hydrogen-driven Nexo to the European Parliament’s professional drivers. Within the framework of the EU Research and Technology Development Project, there is already a fleet of ten Nexos operational since May last year. That fleet is now doubled. MP’s can use the hydrogen cars when they […]
June 15, 2022
The Flemish public transport company De Lijn launched a new campaign on Tuesday to convince people to travel more by bus and tram. The campaign specifically focuses on sustainability and reducing CO2 emissions and does so under the slogan “Join us on the journey toward less CO2”. For the campaign, De Lijn’s electric buses, of […]
June 15, 2022
The British Department of Transport (DfT) has put a lid on its plug-in car grant scheme, making buyers of electric cars no longer eligible for financial support. Scrapping the so-called Plug-In Grant evokes disappointment from carmakers. Still, according to the government, it needs to shift its investments to developing public charging infrastructure and greening other […]
June 14, 2022
As emissions from internal combustion engines (ICE) are reduced due to stricter standards and electrification, other sources of pollution such as brake and tire dust are taking the lead. For example, rubber tires emitting while wearing fine particles into the air are thousands of times more polluting than tailpipe emissions from (recent) cars. New research […]
June 14, 2022
The regional Walloon administration has drawn up a deployment map for installing electric charging stations. According to Walloon Mobility Minister Philippe Henry (Ecolo), some 2 800 sites have been identified. Of this number, nearly 2 000 sites can reasonably easily be equipped with chargers. Private companies accessible to the public can also be an alternative. […]
June 13, 2022
Following a pilot phase in Nuremberg and “overwhelmingly” positive feedback from customers, Audi has decided to expand its concept of charging hubs and take it beyond the German borders. Swiss Zurich is the next place where a mobile charging lounge of this type will be constructed, with Berlin and Salzburg shortly after. Remember Audi’s charging […]
June 13, 2022
Ten years ago, during Picnic The Streets, up to 3000 citizens claimed the public space on the Boulevard Anspach in the heart of Brussels for the first time to banish the car from the city center. On Sunday, in Cinema Palace, the organization looked back, but they looked ahead to the future. Afterward, another symbolic […]
June 09, 2022
Europe has taken a historic step on Wednesday with the Parliament voting a ban on sales of new cars or vans with an internal combustion engine (ICE), including plug-in hybrids, from 2035 on. Only manufacturers selling less than 10 000 – mostly exclusive sports cars like Ferrari – can apply for a derogation for a […]
June 08, 2022
Flanders is beefing up the subsidies for investments in sustainable trucks for heavy transport and buses. For hydrogen trucks, the subsidies even double. “The government wants to support the sustainable transition,” explained the Flemish Minister of Economy and Innovation, Jo Brouns (CD&V). That is also why the financial support for fossil alternatives like LNG or […]
June 07, 2022
Dutch fast charging provider Fastned opened its biggest charging station in Belgium last week, on the E19 highway in Brecht, somewhat halfway between Antwerp and Breda. It allows eight cars to charge simultaneously at 300 kW chargers. The station is implanted at the existing parking, just before the exit Brecht, in the direction of Breda. […]
June 07, 2022
British chemical company Ineos wants to build an open hydrogen network in Antwerp together with gas distributor Fluxys. The hydrogen network must serve as an alternative to fossil fuels. The Ineos factories may later become one of the largest customers of this hydrogen network. Climate-neutral Ineos is the first industrial player to sign an agreement […]
June 01, 2022
Not using your own car during the entire month of June, can you do it? This is the challenge that Prof. Cathy Macharis, head of the VUB research group Mobilise, is proposing to all of us as the ambassador of the ’30 Days Les Car’ campaign. A month without a car means more adventure and […]
June 01, 2022
Things aren’t going well for Flemish public bus operator De Lijn. As a result of the coronavirus, the numbers for passenger traffic lie about 40% lower than before the pandemic. It caused, among other things, a loss of 6 million euros. Like in 2020, the Flemish government absorbed this impact with an extra corona allowance. […]
May 31, 2022
Anyone flying with Brussels Airlines can now choose with one click to compensate for the CO2 emissions of the flight. The option is now integrated into the booking process, the airline announced. The CO2 compensation system already exists at Brussels Airlines, but until now, it was rather time-consuming: the traveler had to click through to […]
May 31, 2022
Daimler Truck has built the first prototypes of the battery-electric long-distance truck eActros LongHaul and plans to test them on public roads this year. In addition, the truck manufacturer has announced further variants of the eActros for distribution transport. The eActros is an electric truck for distribution transport, delivered since the end of February 2022. […]
May 30, 2022
Inhabitants in Brussels who dispose of their vehicles and hand in their licence plates receive a premium through Bruxell’Air or Brussels’Air. The fees vary between 500 and 900 euros depending on income and can be used to finance public transport passes, a bicycle, or car-sharing services. Regarding the last alternative, the municipality of Woluwe-Saint-Pierre has decided […]
May 30, 2022
The G7, the international group of the seven largest advanced economies, have agreed on their energy meeting to “predominantly decarbonized electricity sectors by 2035”. The group concluded that “to this end, we will rapidly scale up the necessary technologies and policies for the clean energy transition.” The G7 consists of the United States, Canada, France, […]
May 27, 2022
The French government is working on a project to provide the poorest inhabitants with an electric car at a cost of 100 euros per month. The proposal, first proposed by the Socialist candidate and mayor of Paris Anne Hidalgo and promised by newly elected president Emmanuel Macron during his first campaign speech on 17 March, […]
May 27, 2022
BMW Brilliance Automotive (BBA), the joint venture between BMW Group and the Chinese manufacturer Brilliance has for the first time established a closed cycle in China for the reuse of the raw materials nickel, lithium, and cobalt from high-voltage batteries. As a result, compared to the use of newly mined material, CO2 emissions are to […]
May 25, 2022
The Flemish government must pay environmental organization Greenpeace a penalty of 850 000 euros. The Air Policy Plan drawn up after a judgment by the Brussels Court of First Instance does not meet the requirements of that judgment, Greenpeace reports. “Flanders still does not have a sufficiently ambitious air action plan,” the organization denounces. No […]
May 25, 2022
The majority of Shell shareholders support the oil and gas company’s plans to reduce its emissions and become climate-neutral by 2050. However, a resolution by activist shareholder Follow This to force Shell to set even stronger climate targets did not get the majority of votes and received less support than last year. The annual meeting […]
May 24, 2022
In an objective to renew the airport of Zaventem into a multimodal hub based on a more environmental-friendly strategy, her CEO Arnaud Feist wants to exchange short-haul flights with high-speed train connections. While pointing at how Brussels Airport was one of the first in Europe with an integrated train station, he also puts the ball […]
May 24, 2022
In the first quarter of 2022, three times more EVs were sold worldwide than last year. With two million battery-powered vehicles registered already this year, the International Energy Agency (IEA) sees a substantial increase in EV adoption, especially in China and the EU. Of all new car sales, EVs now represent 10%. According to the […]
May 23, 2022
In 2021, there were 41,1 million trucks, mostly foreign, on Belgium’s roads. Never before has this number been so high. This is evident from the report for its operating year drawn up by Viapass, the organisation that manages the kilometer charge for trucks in Belgium. Consequently, revenues for the kilometer charge are also peaking: 822 […]
May 23, 2022
The district court of Detmold started a historic court trial against Volkswagen on Friday. The accusor is Ulf Allhoff-Cramer, a German organic farmer who claims that the German car giant is responsible for the demise of his farm, with his crops and animals suffering from global warming. Greenpeace supports the court case. Allhoff-Cramer is a […]
May 20, 2022
Road signs warning for crossing toads, ducklings, or deer are a familiar sight on Belgian roads. But in Wetteren, commuters on the cycle highway alongside the railway are now warned of a new species: wall lizards. Their growing population led to a casualty rate demanding precautionary measures. The population of wall lizards living asides from […]
May 20, 2022
The Brussels government has launched a project call to boost the rollout of charging stations for electric vehicles. All owners of private car parks in Brussels have a chance of receiving a subsidy on the condition that their charging stations run on green electricity, are public, and are accessible 24/7. This has been confirmed by […]
May 20, 2022
The European Commission wants the EU to faster accelerate its endeavor to gain energetical independence. Energy use must be more efficient, the energy supply must be diversified, and the energy sources must become sustainable. The whole plan has been presented this week under the REPowerEU name. The war in Ukraine has once again emphasized the […]
May 19, 2022
Mercedes is joining forces with Sila Nanotechnologies, who developed an innovative battery with a much higher density (+30 to 40%) than what we see today in lithium-ion EV batteries. The first of these would be for the future electric G-Class. Alternative to hydrogen Sila Nanotechnologies is a start-up from Silicon Valley in California that uses […]
May 19, 2022
On Wednesday, Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo announced new plans for the French capital city’s ring road. The ‘périph’, as Parisians call it, will feature an ‘Olympic way’ during the 2024 Olympic Games, reserved for athletes, officials, and emergency services. After the event, that traffic lane will be deleted, and the 10 hectares ‘freed’ will see […]
May 17, 2022
SOLiTHOR, a spin-off of the Leuven-based research company Imec, will develop and market solid-state batteries under the brand name SOLiTHOR. These batteries should also be usable in automotive applications within five to ten years because they are safer, weigh less, and, above all, are cheaper than the current generation of batteries. Ten years of research […]
May 17, 2022
A broad cross-industry coalition is now including Ford of Europe and Volvo Cars. They are appealing to the EU to ensure that all new cars and vans in Europe are zero-emission from 2035 and establish mandatory charging infrastructure targets. The coalition says the deadline for new fossil fuel engines is needed to ensure the last […]
May 13, 2022
The Environmental Committee of the European Parliament has voted in favor of a sales ban on internal combustion engines for cars and vans as of 2035. The Committee dismissed synthetic fuels as a solution and didn’t adopt new interim CO2 targets for the automotive industry. The European lawmakers stayed close to the original proposal by […]
May 13, 2022
Flemish Minister of Mobility, Lydia Peeters (Open Vld), wants to know the effect of lowering the speed on the highways around Ghent. She, therefore, ordered a study, the Minister announced on Thursday in the Mobility Commission of the Flemish Parliament. The Minister hopes she will be able to start a test phase based on the […]
May 12, 2022
On Wednesday, March 11th, energy provider Engie inaugurated its 200th wind turbine on Unilin Insulation’s site in Seneffe. Unilin Insulation is a construction company manufacturing thermal insulation materials. And the energy project contributes to the company’s target to reduce its CO2 emissions by 42% by 2030 and achieve climate neutrality by 2050. The two new […]
May 12, 2022
More than a third of Belgian companies will not make the switch to a fully electric car park by 2026, the deadline the government is setting for new company vehicles sold to be electric. This is shown by an online survey by insurer AON and FLEET Magazine. The reasons are diverse, the 200 respondents say. […]
May 11, 2022
Climate change remains a ‘top of mind’ issue. Eight out of ten worry about climate change, and six out of ten Belgian citizens support the Belgian en European target to become climate neutral by 2050. However, only three out of ten feel that also families have to contribute. The figures come from the fifth national […]
May 11, 2022
A new trial involving nearly 400 families living in the area affected by noise pollution from flights of Brussels National Airport is targeting the Belgian government. The civil lawsuit, led by the civic organizations Wake up Crainhem and AWACSS, has been launched at the Brussels Court of First Instance, writes the newspaper La Libre Belgique. […]
